Being a writer enables me to come into contact with some of the most interesting people. The best part is you never know when or where you will find someone that will touch your spirit. One Christmas, my spirit was really low and I needed something to help lift me up out of my mood. I was really struggling when I made a decision to join in a secret sister type program for a month.

I didn’t think about the effect that getting the opportunity to know one person might have on my life. I seem to know a lot of people already and I have been blessed in many ways through meeting them. There has been no one person that I have met that has been a major life changing force in my life until that month.

You see, I met a very special woman that I had heard of through the group that was holding the secret sister program, but I never really thought that she would impact my life the way she has. But really, it shouldn’t have surprised me. She has impacted several people’s lives in much more life altering ways than mine.

She knows what rough times are like and has lived through more than her share just like the rest of us. But she has chosen a path that may not seem obvious to all of us at first. For her, it was not a difficult decision. In fact she once had a quote on her web page, that in my humble opinnion suits her attitude exactly. “Because I Care … and I’ve been there.” The writer which I speak of is none other than Angela Giles Klocke.

Not only does she give of herself and her time by working on the many web sites that she keeps updated for teen parents, writers, and children that write, she also makes some of the most intriguing crochet blankets which she then donates to needy teen parents. Now you may agree that is a lot of helping for one woman to do, but that isn’t enough for her. She even runs a @{coupon program}@ to help young teenage parents or needy parents that need a little assistance with the purchase of supplies that are a necessary part of being a parent.

Now you may be thinking that is great but it just is not something that I could do. I’m not that organized. Well you may not be able to do it alone, but there are ways that you can do something similar. If you happen to run across coupons for diapers, baby wipes, formula, or any of the other many things that are necessary in the day to day life with an infant or toddler, you can always send them to Angela. She will then see that they are distributed between the needy families that send in requests. The information for sending them to her can be found at One Young Parent.

Or if you are interested in starting a program of your own for the needy families in your community, then take her example and just do it because you care. Start by finding out what is needed by talking to the local shelters, churches, and community aid organizations. See if they can give you any suggestions on how to get the word out that you are collecting coupons that others don’t need and that you are taking requests for coupons.

Don’t overlook some areas that may not be so obvious. Talk to bookstores, libraries, Laundromats, grocery stores, thrift stores, and anyplace that has a community board to see if you can post an announcement regarding your coupon drive. Contact the editor of the lifestyle section of your local paper and let them know what you are doing. They may be interested in doing an article, which could be great publicity to help get the word out.

The most important advice I could give you is try to get a collection of coupons to start with as well as a way of organizing them according to type of product and expiration date. Having the coupons won’t do you any good if they don’t get sent out to those that need them before they expire, nor will having requests but no coupons to fill them.

As you can see, this is a tremendous amount of work for one individual. The sheer fact that Angela has undertaken this project on her own is amazing to me. But with the right organizational set up, it can be done. She is living proof of it. The amazing part is that she would be the first one to tell you, that she isn’t any different from you and I. She is someone that cares enough to get involved, just like we are.